Want an e-reader with an extra-sharp resolution, but don't relish the thought of dropping $199 on a Kindle Voyage when some tablets cost that much? Kobo thinks it can help. Its just-unveiled Glo HD reader packs a 1,448 x 1,072 front-lit E Ink display for a more reasonable $130 -- that leaves a lot of spare money for, y'know, actual books. It has the same 4GB of built-in storage as its Amazon counterpart, too, so you'll have room for a big library. The Glo HD should reach North America on May 1st, and it'll land in the UK a month later with a £110 price tag.

Unlike Blinkbox Movies and Blinkbox Music, Tesco hasn't found a buyer for its underperforming Blinkbox Books service. We expected the e-book platform to quietly fade into the night, along with customers' purchases, but it seems Tesco has a parting gift for bookworms that embraced its Kindle alternative. The beleaguered supermarket is teaming up with Kobo so that users can transition their Blinkbox libraries to the rival platform, free of charge. Tesco says it'll email users in the next two to three weeks with a special code for unlocking their purchases inside Kobo; the latter's library should also mirror Blinkbox's exactly, so readers won't lose any books in the move. At this stage it's not clear if any money is changing hands, but there are obvious benefits for both parties; Tesco now has a better chance of avoiding customer backlash, while Kobo gets to pick up a wave of new users. Of course, Kobo already has an Android app too, so it should be a fairly easy transition for Hudl owners who want to keep Tesco's tablet as their primary e-reader.

Ray Bradbury, the author of Fahrenheit 451, once said: "Nothing a computer can do can compare to a book." For some, the pleasure of flipping through a paperback may never change, but pragmatism is starting to take hold. More people than ever are opting for e-books; the benefits of having a virtual library in your pocket outweigh the nostalgia for physical books. And although modern e-readers have been around in some form or another for over two decades, the evolution and adoption process has been a long and complex one. Join us as we take a look at some of the key moments in the e-reader's history.

When Kobo launched the Aura, the idea of selling a premium e-reader with a top-line price and a big screen was something of a risk compared to the Kindle juggernaut. When the device went on to become responsible for a full quarter of the Canadian company's sales, it was clear that the risk had paid off. Naturally, when it came time for the Kobo Aura H20 to make its debut, the company decided that the next frontier would be to try and conquer an e-reader's deadliest foe: water. Slideshow-220531

With Barnes and Noble reduced to borrowing Samsung tablets and Sony giving up altogether, only Kobo stands in the way of Amazon's total e-book domination. Now, the company is hoping to steal a march on its rival by introducing the first waterproof e-reader, the Aura H2O (assuming you don't count Waterfi, and we aren't). It's the first such device that's IP67 certified, meaning that it'll last under a meter of water for up to half an hour if the port cover is closed. The display is the same size as the Aura HD, offering a 6.8-inch touch-enabled e-ink display with ComfortLight tech, offering a resolution of 1,430 x 1,080 and a pixel density of 265 dpi. Like its brethren, it does come with Pocket integration, enabling you to read long form web content away from your tablet or smartphone. There's 4GB of on-board storage and a microSD slot if you want to add in a 32GB card, as well as a battery that's rated for two months of use -- if you only use it for 30 minutes a day, of course. The Kobo Aura H2O will be available on October 1st, priced at $180 in the US/Canada, £140 in the UK and €180 in Spain, Germany, France, Italy and the Netherlands.

Canadian e-reader company Kobo had a dream. That dream was to ignore commercial convention and ask its most hardcore of users what they would want from their dream e-reader -- a bit like How Would You Change, in that respect. The result was the Aura HD, a 6.8-inch slate with a high-res (for an e-reader) display, impressive storage and a best-in-class front light. In our opinion, the hardware was gorgeous, but the software left a lot to be desired, not to mention that Kobo's bookstore isn't as strong as Amazon's. Still, what we want to ask is, if you bought one of these, what did you think of it? Head on over to the forum and spill your brains.

As part of its multi-pronged effort to stop leaking red ink Sony decided to eliminate its Reader division. Rather than simply cut off customers who have already bought one of its devices though, it's turning to the Canada-based e-reader giant Kobo, which has a 4-million strong e-book catalog. The transition is now officially underway, as Sony has announced that Kobo's app will now be pre-loaded on Xperia and Reader devices in the UK, Austria, Australia and Germany. And thus begins the inevitable shuttering of Reader stores across the world, except in Japan. But don't panic, customers will get an email describing how to transfer their library over to Kobo. And until the the transition is complete you'll still be able to buy e-books from the Reader Store. If the whole thing has left a sour taste in your mouth, though, there are plenty of other options.

Update: Sony has added Australia to the list of countries with Kobo coming pre-installed to Xperia and Reader devices, and reminded us that the Sony Reader store will remain open in Japan.

Forget race cars and Disney princesses. Kids in the UK are getting something a little more digital with their McDonald's Happy Meal: an e-book. The golden arches is partnering with Kobo to include a download code for one of Enid Blyton's Secret Seven children's mystery books with every meal purchased between now and June 3rd as part of its annual "Happy Readers" program. Over the past two years, the annual initiative has passed out millions of books, and is touted as quite a success (although we're not quite sure how "happy" we'd be about getting an e-book rather than a toy). However, this is the first time Ronald has gotten a digital retailer like Kobo in on the action. Enthusiastic kids who still want to fill the bookshelf in their room can also snag a £1 coupon with their meal to pick up a traditional copy of the books. If only the child detectives could forever solve the mystery of what's actually in McDonald's chicken nuggets.

Sony recently bid farewell to three device categories. The long-struggling Japanese consumer electronics giant is selling off its PC division, spinning out its TV group into a separate company and getting out of the e-book business by handing it over to Kobo. While each has a unique history, they all demonstrate the difficulties Sony has had in dominating any one category.

Sony's introduction of the Trinitron in the 1960s accelerated its ascent to the top of the consumer electronics food chain in the following decades. By the 1980s, virtually any TV buyer knew that nothing compared to Sony and the company's big-screen offerings were bolstered by the arrival of CRT screens that lacked the convex curve of the time. (Back then, curved screens were passé, not leading edge.)

With its eye firmly fixed on a return to profitability, Sony's been making extensive cuts to its business arms in recent days (bye bye, VAIO!). So it's no surprise the company would train that cost-cutting eye onto another underperforming unit -- its e-reader business. Sony announced today that it'll be shuttering its Reader store in the US and Canada come "late March" and that all Reader accounts (including library content) would be moved to Kobo's platform during that time. Existing users shouldn't have much to worry about though, as Sony claims the "migration process" should be painless and that it'll issue a how-to email to walk users through it. The deal will also see Kobo's app pre-installed on select Xperia devices, which should give Kobo a significant boost in audience reach. That's assuming consumers start buying Xperias in bulk.

Update: Sony contacted us to clarify that the Kobo app will only come pre-loaded on select Xperia devices.

Been considering a slate-style purchase? Well, today may be the time to make the leap. While Microsoft's Surface Pro (no, not the deuce) gets a massive discount, and may very well be the most attractive tablet/hybrid buy of the week, we've nabbed a few other options too. Take a look at the other side of the break for discounts on the rest of the lot.

Just window shopping? No worries. Join us and add the gadgets you're shopping for to your "Want" list; every time there's a price cut in the future, you'll get an email alert!

The e-reading enthusiasts at Kobo have been making some waves in the tablet market lately and the Arc 10HD is one of the biggest and best Kobo has to offer. As the name implies, this 10-inch slate boasts a 2,560 x 1,600 HD display, which is perfect for watching movies -- but you should probably read the book first. The Arc 10HD runs Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean and offers access to the Kobo bookstore, the Google Play Store and even integration with the Pocket app for offline reading. So let's get down to brass tacks: The folks at Kobo have been kind enough to provide a pair of these tablets for two lucky Engadget readers to enjoy. Just head on down to the Rafflecopter widget below for your chance to win.

You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.

A tablet for readers has always been a tricky proposition. For starters, the manufacturers that have attempted to create such a thing also make dedicated e-readers -- devices with longer battery life and screens designed to make text look as much like print as possible. Barnes & Noble has given the category a shot with its Nook Tablets, though there are lingering questions as to whether that line will even survive. Amazon, meanwhile, has gone the opposite route, with reading representing just one of many features. Kobo's latest readers see the company doubling down on reading, with a trio of tablets built around a reading core.

The Arc 10HD is the top-of-the-line model, a slate that doesn't skimp on the specs (or price, for that matter, at $400). Most notably, it maintains a clear focus, promising to be (in Kobo's own PR speak) "the best 10-inch HD tablet for readers." For Kobo, that means loading up on book-centric features, including one that turns off all of those tablety distractions so you can just read. What, precisely, does it mean to be "the best 10-inch HD tablet for readers"? Does Kobo even deserve that distinction? Most importantly, is it a category within a category that really needs to exist in the first place?Slideshow-122673

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Wed, 20 Nov 2013 14:00:00 -050021|20768564http://www.engadget.com/2013/11/19/holiday-gift-guide-2013-e-readers/%3Futm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_source%3DFeed_Classic%26utm_campaign%3DEngadget%26ncid%3Drss_semi
http://www.engadget.com/2013/11/19/holiday-gift-guide-2013-e-readers/http://www.engadget.com/2013/11/19/holiday-gift-guide-2013-e-readers/%3Futm_source%3DFeed_Classic%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DEngadget%23commentsWelcome to Engadget's holiday gift guide! Head back to our hub to see the rest of the product guides as they're added throughout the month.

Weighing your e-reader options isn't as difficult as, say, deciding on a new smartphone. There are fewer models to sift through, for one, and your allegiance to Amazon or B&N could further narrow things down. Still, you have a range of options in every camp -- from barebones devices meant for reading and nothing else to full-fledged tablets with the higher-end specs to match. Below, we make the case for some of our top picks.

You wouldn't expect an e-reader to be very customizable, but they've provided a rich seamof fodderfor enterprisinghackers. The latest to be broken is Kobo's Glo, which has has been tweaked to run a full version of Android by a user on MobileRead's forums. It was relatively easy, as the Glo shares a lot of DNA with the previously-cracked Tolino Shine. Naturally, the hack gives you Google Play access, so it's entirely possible to install the Kindle app on the reader, but remember -- you'd be breaking a lot of hearts over at Kobo towers if you did.

Just as e-books mean anyone with an internet connection has the world's biggest library to hand, they also mean anyone with a word processor can be an author. Some of the big e-book outlets have self-publishing programs that circumvent the traditional channels, so you can simply share your story and let readers judge you, instead of banking on a publishing house giving you a shot. A great idea in theory, but as some e-book retailers are discovering, not without its faults. As the BBC reports, e-book vendors including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo and others are scrambling to remove certain kinds of erotica (twisted stuff featuring abuse, rape, etc.) from their stores. Several recent articles by The Kernel highlighted the availability of such material, and questioned the ethics of retailers profiting from it. Another issue brought to public attention is how the content had been indexed -- it was easily discoverable using seemingly harmless search criteria.

While Amazon and B&N are said to be removing titles deemed inappropriate from their sites, Kobo has temporarily closed its e-book store while it scours the virtual shelves and attempts to "protect the reputation of self-publishing." As you'd expect, all the merchants mentioned have guidelines prohibiting the publication of offensive texts (call it public interest censorship), and yet have launched reactionary measures following recent reports. With self-publishing programs in their infancy, it appears approval systems aren't yet developed enough to automatically flag content that breaches those policies. Despite this rather major hiccup, we're sure many would agree that self-publishing is a sound concept -- there are just a few kinks in the execution department that need ironing out. In light of this controversy, perhaps it's time for e-book stores to start acting a bit more like real publishers.

You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.

You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.

Outside the US, Kobo is a major player in the e-reader space. Here in the states, however, mentioning the name will almost certainly elicit baffled stares. In 2011, the company was hit particularly hard when Borders, its main retail partner, shuttered. Since then, Kobo's been attempting to rebuild through networks of independent booksellers. One glaring misstep aside, Kobo has since put out solid devices, ones that could even stand up against what Amazon and Barnes & Noble are selling. Earlier this year, the company took this a step further with the Aura HD, a pricey, high-spec, 7-inch device for hardcore readers. Kobo didn't expect to move many units. The HD now accounts for a quarter of Kobo's e-reader sales. Clearly the company was onto something.

As the successor to last year's Glo, the new Kobo Aura splits the difference between luxury and mainstream, borrowing some elements from the HD and giving them new life in a more affordable 6-inch device. In this case, "more affordable" means $150 -- that's still $20 more than the Glo and $30 more than the Paperwhite. The company's also made some updates on the software end, including, notably, the addition of the Pocket reading app. So, do the upgrades justify the asking price?Slideshow-83166

You might say the week is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workweek, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Weekly Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past seven days -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.

You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.

So we've already spent some hands-on time with Kobo's Aura e-reader and the Arc 10HD. That leaves two more devices, right? Well, here's the thing -- as much as the 10-inch tablet wasn't ready in time for tonight's event, the company at least managed to trot it out. As for the seven-inchers, well, the Arc 7HD didn't show, and while the Arc 7 was here, the slate was running a constant demo, meaning we couldn't take it through its paces. As for the hardware? On the face of it, the tablet looks a fair bit like the original Kindle Fire and a number of other seven-inch rectangular tablets. On the top is the standard red Kobo power button, on the right side of the device is a volume rocker and on the left are the headphone jack, micro-HDMI and microUSB ports.

Like its bigger brother, the soft touch rear of the device has borrowed some of the angular design language from the Aura HD around the corners. On the bottom, you'll find a single speaker grille. All three of Kobo's new tablets are set to launch on October 16th -- we're sure we'll be able to spend a bit more time with this guy before then. When it does land, it'll run you $150, with its HD sibling starting at $200.Slideshow-73876

Love the Kobo ecosystem, but hoping for a tablet that's a little... higher end than what the Arc line currently offers? Boy have we got some news for you. The company introduced a grand total of three new tablets at today's event in New York City, and here's the crown jewel, the 10-inch Arc 10HD. Compared to the offerings we've seen from other e-reader makers, this thing really is a beast. It's also a pretty nice piece of hardware with a solid build. The front of the slate is all screen, plus a glossy, flush bezel that also houses the device's one webcam, a 1.3-megapixel offering that can also shoot 720p.

On the top of the fairly thin and light device, you'll find Kobo's standard red power button. On the right side is a volume rocker and along the left is a headphone jack, micro-HDMI and micro USB ports. On the back are two speaker grills, which didn't put out enough power to be heard over the event's music. There's also some subtle angular design language borrowed from the Aura HD on the sides of the otherwise flat soft touch back.

Remember that new e-reader from Kobo we told you about, not all that many minutes ago? Say hello to the Aura. The successor to the Glo owes more than just its name to the recently introduced Aura HD -- the device has also brought over the high-end specs and a bit of the device language from that Cadillac of e-readers. When the company handed off the reader, the first thing we noticed was that best in class front lighting. Kobo mastered that back with the Glo and has naturally trotted it out on subsequent devices.

Also immediately apparent is the size of the thing. The Aura appears smaller than other six-inch readers. Hold it up against the Paperwhite and it's clear that there's considerably less bezel. Also, the bezel lays flush with the display -- Kobo's dumped the old infrared touch for a capacitive screen, so there's no need for a gap. The device is impressively thin and light compared to past Kobo readers -- and the rest of the market, for that matter. This really is an impressive piece of hardware, though even with that in mind, the $150 price tag may be tough for all but the most hardcore readers to swallow. Around the back, you'll notice that Kobo brought a bit of the crooked design from the HD, though it's a lot more subtle than on that reader. As an homage to past Kobo readers, the criss cross diamond design is back, though it's also far more subtle and smaller this time out.